The Irish standard., 1887-10-15
4 MISSION IN The FAR west
Prosperity and Civilization of Indians
Left to Catholic In
fuence.
THE NORTH-AMERlCAN INDIAN
Fast Robing Himself in the
Habillments of His White
Brother.

l came here to see the moderniZed
red man, transformed by the ciylliZing
influence from the warlike savage OF
the forest to the peaceable tiller Of the
soil. The American Indian, though
still proud OF his paint and feathers,
his prismatic blanket and various col
ored strings Of beaas, is fast robing hinl
self iii the habiliments Of the white
man, and soon the curling smoke that
rises from the cone shaped wigWams
along the banks OF the mountain
streams will ascend from the rnantel
breasted chimneys, where the red man,
40 longer unt;1tored and ignorant, shall
sit around the winters hearth. aud read
to his children the legends of his fore
fathers in the long ago. Or mayhap
the young brave, from whose breast
the savage instincts Of old shall have
been extirpated by the pleasures of the
mind, shall recount by public acclaim
the historic scenes through which his
people passed, and the dawn OF faith
and Christianity among them.
Is the picture romantic OF inproba-
bic? J. saw it through the lens Of
thonght, as I beheld the copper~hued
young Indians declaim with grace and
spirit. unravel mathematical problems
that to me were full OF gordian knots,
and breathe into sounding brass the
spiril-stirring creations Of our patriotic
national composers.
From far and wide over the great
North hWestreservation the Indians came
in files and bands to celebrate the Feast
OF St. Igna5ius. which, since the advent
Of the Mission Fathers more than thirty
years ago, hats been observed With p0mD
and ceremony, feasGii.@ and reunion.
The mission proper is twenty miles
from the home Of Majo Roman, the
Indian agent, and thitheG we Started
Oh tile morning Of the 30tn OF July. The
ride over Was through The most Dictu
rescue canyons and valleys Of The Rocky
Mountains, along the banks Ut Gle
sJocko River, which was bridseless, and
Che treacherous current of which Mzss
fOIded by olr bruncllOs with difficulty.
towards the eud Of Our Journey We
mounted the winding, rocky ascent OF
Q huge go. g, and after following q rOl
ling country tor a few miles, we again
mounted q great, large hill, and there
before us, straight across d beautiful
valley, that, steep decynding, stretched
beneath our teeJ. We sttW the cluster OF
buildings with the stars and stripes UNI
furied overhead. Long rows of trees
and shrubbery stretched out on either
side, and in the background McDon-
ald's Peak rose, Titan-like, above tie
surrounding mountain ranges. It WIS
high noon; yet the gray mists vi the
morning still hung heavy over the
mountains. We could see evidences OF
the busy preparation and the moving
figures OF the swarthy natives tlitling
to AID fro as the arrival OF some new
party of Indians betoken the reunion
of warrior friends,
Our own arrival produced 20 discern
1ble impression. the lounging Indians
being wrapped seemingly ia their own
contemplations. We put up at the
house of Mr. Alexander Denlers, the
post trader, and during the evening
paid our respects to the Missionary
Fathers and the Bishop Of Montana,
who came over to administer the Sacra-
ment Of Confirmation to the Indian
children. Here was the scene Of some
of the fearless and untiring labors of
the great Father de Smet. whose salu
tary teachings among the Northwest,
and whose unquenchable devotion to
the amelioration Of the Indians savage
state are held in dearhless veneartion
among all English reading peoples.
The entire settlement was astir when
the earliest CLEANS of the sun played
upon the tinselled crown Of the flag
staff, and by nine o'clock the church
which held upwards Of eight hundred
people, was filled to the door-steps with
kneeling postulants, praying aloud in
a kind of chatter peculiar to the Kal-
ispel dialect, and which, to the nnde-
vout must have been ear-racking. The |
prayers finally ceased in unison, and
the celebration 5f the Mass began. The
altar was as tastefully decorated with
flowers and plants as any of the affairs
in the East, and the music of the choir
Of young Indian maidens was rendered
with precision and melody. The SER
mon was delivered in English by Bishop
Brondel, and below the dais on which
tentively, and at the end Of every ninth |